Definitions for magiˈmeɪ dʒaɪ

This page provides all possible meanings and translations of the word magi

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:(0.00 / 0 votes)

Wise Men, Magi(noun)

(New Testament) the sages who visited Jesus and Mary and Joseph shortly after Jesus was born; the Gospel According to Matthew says they were guided by a star and brought gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh; because there were three gifts it is usually assumed that there were three of them

WiktionaryRate this definition:(0.00 / 0 votes)

Magi(ProperNoun)

The three wise men that met the baby Jesus at the Epiphany.

Magi(ProperNoun)

The three bright stars that form Orion's Belt.

magi(Noun)

Plural form of magus.

magi(Noun)

Plural form of mage.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:(0.00 / 0 votes)

Magi

a caste of priests, philosophers, and magicians, among the ancient Persians; hence, any holy men or sages of the East

Origin: [L., pl. of Magus, Gr. ; of Per. origin. Cf. Mage, Magic.]

FreebaseRate this definition:(0.00 / 0 votes)

Magi

Magi is a term, used since at least the 6th century BC, to denote followers of Mazdaism or Zoroaster. The earliest known usage of the word Magi is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius the Great, known as the Behistun Inscription.
Starting later, presumably during the Hellenistic period, the word Magi also denotes followers of what the Hellenistic chroniclers incorrectly associated Zoroaster with, which was – in the main – the ability to read the stars, and manipulate the fate that the stars foretold. However, Old Persian texts, pre-dating the Hellenistic period, refer to a Magus as a Mazdaic, and presumably Zoroastrian, priest.
Pervasive throughout the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia until late antiquity and beyond, mágos, "Magian" or "magician," was influenced by Greek goēs, the older word for a practitioner of magic, to include astrology, alchemy and other forms of esoteric knowledge. This association was in turn the product of the Hellenistic fascination for Zoroaster, who was perceived by the Greeks to be the "Chaldean" "founder" of the Magi and "inventor" of both astrology and magic. Among the skeptical thinkers of the period, the term 'magian' acquired a negative connotation and was associated with tricksters and conjurers. This pejorative meaning survives in the words "magic" and "magician".

The Nuttall EncyclopediaRate this definition:(0.00 / 0 votes)

Magi

a priestly caste in the East, constituting the "learned" class, as the Druids in the West: the custodiers of religion and the rites connected therewith, and who gave themselves up to the study of sciences of a recondite character, but with a human interest, such as astrology and magic, and who were held in great reverence by, and exercised a great influence over, the people.